BRAF(V600E) mutation and the biology of papillary thyroid cancer

BRAF(V600E) mutation is the most frequent genetic alteration in papillary thyroid carcinomas (PTCs) that are 80–90% of all thyroid cancers. We evaluated the relationship between BRAF(V600E) and tumor, host, and environmental factors in PTCs from all geographical areas of Sicily. By PCR, BRAF(V600E) was investigated in a series of 323 PTCs diagnosed in 2002–2005. The correlation between clinicopathological tumor, host, and environmental characteristics and the presence of BRAF(V600E) were evaluated by both univariate and multivariate analyses. BRAF(V600E) was found in 38.6% PTCs, with a 52% frequency in the classical PTCs and 26.4% in the tall cell variant. Univariate analysis indicated that BRAF(V600E) was associated with greater tumor size (P=0.0048), extra-thyroid invasion (P